Bottle cleaning apparatus



1932- J. R. GRUETTER 1,870,503

I BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 23. 1951 v 7 Sheets-Sheet 1Jmmtov g- 9, 1932- J. R. GRUETTEWR Q 1,870,503

BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 23, 1951 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 1932- J.R, GRUETTER 1,870,503

BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 25, 1951 7 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 9,1932. J. R. GRUETTER BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 23, 19317-Sheets-Sheet 4 In lfllllkll I llll llk J R. GRUETTER BOTTLE CLEANINGAPPARATUS Aug. 9, 1932.

Filed Jan. 23, 1951 '7 Sheets-Sheet 5 1932- .1. R. GRUETTER 1,870,503

BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS File Jan- 19.31 '7 Sheets-Sheet 6 F I Th.

tlttoanoq Aug. 9, 1932, J. R. GRUETTER BOTTLE CLEANING APPARATUS FiledJan. 23, 1931 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 Patented Aug. 9, 1932 TENT GFFICE JOHN R.GBUETTER, 0F CLEVELAND, GHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE LIQUID GARBONIC GOR-PORATION, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE BOTTLECLEANING APPARATUS Application filed January 23, 1931.

This invention relates to apparatus for cleaning bottles and moreparticularly to ap paratus of the general type wherein the bottles aremounted on transverse carriers flexibly connected and constituting anendless conveyor by which the bottles are advanced intermittently though the apparatus and are subjected, during their transit thercthrough,to various interior and exterior treatments with liquid, tl eirexteriors and interiors also being subjected to the action of brushes,as part of the clea -ing treatment.

The particular invention disclosed herein relates more especially to themechanism for brushing the outsides of the bottles while in transitthrough an,apparatus of the general character referred to. Morelimitedly, the invention relates to the means for centering the bottleson the carriers with respect to a series of lifting rods which serve tosubject them to the action of cleaning means. An instance of apparatusof the general type to which this invention relates is disclosed inPatent No. 1,313,706 issued to Charles H. Loew and myself on August 19,1919; also in Patent No. 1,719,8 l4. issued July 9. 1929 to Paul N. Loewand Robert E. McKechnie.

It is the general purpose and object of the invention to enable bottles,while being conducted through an apparatus of the general characteraforesaid, to be brushed in a particularly eflicient manner; also toinsure that the bottles in each transverse carrier shall be convenientlyand effectively aligned with respect to the lifting rods or spindles bywhich they are lifted from their carriers into operative relation tocleaning mechanism located above the carriers and the conveyor of whichthe carriers form a part In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 representsa side elevation of a part of a bottle washing apparatus of the generaltype re ferred to, showing three of the transverse series of bottles,together with the brushing mechanisms and the means for lifting thebottles from their seats in the carriers into operative relation to thebrushing mechanisms, the brushing mechanisms being shown in thepositions occupied'thereby prior to lifting a series of bottlestherebetween; Fig.

Serial No. 510,713.

2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but taken from the opposite side of theapparatus and showing one series of bottles lifted between the brushingmechanisms and the positions of the brushes during this operation; Fig.3 is a top plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and2; Fig. l is a sectional view corresponding to the line et l of Fig. 1;Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view through the apparatus shown inthe preceding views, the parts being in the positions which they occupyin Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a view, similar to Fi 5, but showing the parts inthe positions which they occupy in Fig. 2; Fig. 7 is a trans versesectional view through the mechanism for rotating the bottle bottomclamps; and Fig. 8 is a sectional elevation showing the manner ofrotating and oscillating the vertically rotating brushes.

In the operation of the portion of the apparatus disclosed herein, thebottle conveyor is moved intermittently along tracks and, when eachseries of bottles reaches the first brushing station, the mouths of thebottles are automatically centered above their respective lifting rods,the brushes which operate on the sides of the bottles being separated atthis time to permit the passage of the bodies of the bottlestherethrough; the bottles are then elevated between vertically rotatingand horizontally rotating brushes, which are thereby moved toward eachother, the brushes rotatin and operating on opposite sides of thebottles; the bottles are then lowered into the seats provided thereforin their transverse carrier, the brushes being separated during thismovement; the conveyor is advanced another step, bringing the bottlesjust treated beneath the horizontally rotating brush and said bottlesare then raised from their seats in the carrier a short distance tobring their bottoms into engagement with said brush, the series ofbottles next adjacent to the rear being lifted meanwhile between thehorizon tally rotating brush and the vertically rotating brushes to havetheir outer sides cleaned in the manner referred to hereinbefore.

The details of the mechanism by which the foregoing operations areaccomplished will now be described.

It will be understood that the major portion of the complete apparatusis enclosed within a casing, a portion of which is indicated at Y, thesaid apparatus including longitudinally extending rails 1 on which thebottle conveyor, consisting of flexibly connected transverse carriers 2,is supported by rollers 3as is shown generally in the patent to Loewandmyself referred to hereinbefore. As the means for moving the conveyorintermittently along the rails 1 is well known to those skilled in thisart, illustration of such mechanism is deemed unnecessary.

For the purpose of lifting the bottles 4 from their respective carrierswhen each carrier reaches its proper position with respect to thebrushes thereabove, I have provided lifting rods A, one for each bottleon a carrier, extending upwardly from a cross-head B. Four bottles areshown in each transverse series and four lifting rods; but it will beunderstood that the number of bottles constituting each series and thenumber of lifting rods therefor may be varied in accordance with thecapacity of a given apparatus. Each of these lifting rods has its upperend pointed, as indicated at A, and is provided with a tapered seat Atherebeneath that engages within the mouth of a bottle thereabove.Opposite ends of the cross-bar B are connected by arms B and links Bwith a rock shaft X which extends transversely of the apparatus, beingmounted in bearings provided therefor in opposite sides of the housingor casing T, as shown at X. B denotes guide brackets which are securedto each end of'the cross-head B and which are adapted to slide upon thevertical guide rods C.

Secured to and extending between the guide rods C is an angle ironmember D having guide openings therethrough for the upper portions ofthe rods A (see Figs. 4 and 5). D denotes another angle iron memberwhich is supported above and at the rear or right of the member D bymeans of a bracket D secured to the member D.

The bottle centering mechanism consists of laterally spaced angularguide members each having a portion E extending longitudinally of theapparatus and a vertical portion E secured to the vertical branch of theangle iron D, the longitudinal portion of each guide member having adownwardly projecting tongue E, between which tongues the necks of thebottles on a transverse carrier which has been moved above the rods Aare positioned. These tongues serve to center the necks of the bottlesin one direction with repeat to the corresponding rods A. Verticaltongues E which are mounted on a pair of transversely extending bars Eproject upwardly toward the portions E of the guide members and serve,when the bars E are moved as pointed out hereinafter, to complete thecentering of the mouths of the bottles above the rods A, the tonguesthen forming in effect a temporary box-like structure around each bottleneck. When the bottle carrier and the bottles therein are being moved,the upwardly extending tongues E are out of the paths of the bottles,being in the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 4. When a bottlecarrier stops above the rods A, the bars E are moved in the followingmanner transversely of the apparatus to bring the tongues E intoaligning relation to the mouths of the bottles, thereby to form with thetongues E a complete centering box for the mouth of each bottle on suchcarrier. The manner of supporting and moving the bars E whereby thetongues IE will also be moved into appropriate relation to the tonguesE, will now be described:

The opposite ends of the bars E are pivotally connected to thedownwardly extending arms E of a pair of hell cranks, the bell cranksbeing pivoted on brackets E projecting from the sides of the apparatus(see Fig. 4). A spring E is connected at one end to the horizontal armof the bell crank carrying the arm E and at its other end to an eye boltE which is secured to the guide rod C. A vertical rod E is connected atits upper end to the horizontal arm of the other bell crank and has itslower end slidably mounted in a bracket E carried by the guide bracket Btherebeneath, the said rod having a nut E on the lower end thereofnormally engaged by the said bracket.

When the cross-head B is in its lowered position, the spring E will beinoperative to rock the bell crank to which it is connected, andthetongues IE will be in the positions shown in Fig. 4. lVhen thecross-head starts moving upwardly, however, the spring E is free to rockthe bell crank to which it connected, thereby moving the bars E trans:-versely and bringing the tongues E into register with the spacesprovided between the guide members E. This results in completing thealinement of the mouths of the bottles above the lifting rods A. WVhenthe cross-head B is moved downwardly, the bracket E will engage the nutE and will pull downwardly on the rod E thereby moving the bars E to theposition shown in Fig. 4, with the tongues E out of the paths ofmovement of the bottles.

The bottle rotating mechanism is of substantially the same character asthat shown in the patent to Loew and myself referred to hereinbefore andin the patent to Loew and McKechnie No. 1,719,844 issued July 19, 1929.This mechanism consists generally of a series of vertically movableangular rods F corresponding in numberand position to ments by sleeves Fwithin a. housing, indicated generally at F (see Figs. 4, 5 and 7 Eachsleeve is provided with a spur gear F the gears intermeshing with oneanother and one of the final gears being provided with a beveled gear Fintegral therewith which meshes with a beveled gear F on one end of ashaft F which is mounted in an extension of the framework of theapparatus and which shaft is provided at its opposite end with a doublespur gear consisting of a. hub havin on the outer end thereof a largegear F and on the lEOt y thereof a small gear F The shaft F 7 is drivenby a shaft G extend ing transversely of the apparatus and mounted inbrackets G secured to the housing F (see Figs. 1, 3, 5 and 8). To oneend of the shaft is fastened a pulley G whereby the shaft is driven fromany convenient source of power. On the opposite end of the shaft thereis mounted a sprocket G and a gear The shaft G drives the shaft F bymeans of the G which meshes with the gear F Sprockets G and I areconnected by a sprocket chain G H denotes a shaft which is supported onthe opposite side of the housing from the shaft G by means of bearingbrackets H extending from the said housing and in alignment with thebrackets G. One end of the shaft H is provided with a spur gear H andits opposite end with a crank disk H I and 1 denote brackets whichextend downwardly from the longitudinal members I located on oppositesides of the machine (see Figs. 1, 2, a and 5). A shaft 1 is mounted forrocking and reciprocatory movements in the said brackets. On one end ofthe shaft 1 there is loosely mounted a gear I carrying asprocket IPinned to the shaft I between the brackets I and I, are arms J whichextend upwardly and downwardly from the shaft and which are provided attheir lower ends with journals l in which is mounted the shaft Jcarrying the horizontal brush J Secured to the shaft J is a wide gear Jwhich meshes with the gear 1*. r

()n the opposite end of the shaft 1 from the gear 1* and sprocket I is agrooved collar 1 wnich is engaged by the pins on the forked arm of abell crank I which is pivoted between lugs 1 carried by the bracket I(see Figs. 2 and 1 denotes a connecting rod which has its upper endconnected to a crank pin H on the crank H and its lower end connected tothe forked end of the other end of the bell crank 1 through. a universaljoint connection 1 1 It will be evident that, as the shaft H isrevolved, the shaft I will be. reciprocated in its bearings by theconnections just described, thereby reciprocating the brush J which isbeing rotated through the gears 1* and J Mounted within the brackets Gand extending inwardly therefrom are sleeves K, through which the shaftG also extends, and a hanger yoke K is rotatably mounted on theextensions K of said sleeves (see Fig. 8). Journal sleeves K extenddownwardly from the yoke K and serve as bearings for vertical shafts Keach of which has at its upper end a beveled gear and at its lower end abrush Kt. It will be noted that the brushes K are shaped to conform tothe contours of the bottles which they engage and that they intermesh'with each other; also that the beveled gears K mesh with beveled gears Kon the shaft G. It will be evident that, as the shaft G rotates, thebrushes K are also rotated about substantially vertical axes.

Each journal sleeve K is provided with an apertured lug K each of whichis adapted to receive one end of a link I The opposite ends of theselinks are connected respectively to the upper ends of the arms J bywhich the horizontal brush J is suspended from th shaft I (see Figs. 2,5, 6 and 8). It will be seen from Figs. 5 and 6 that the arrangement issuch that, when the brushes K are rocked, the brush J will be rocked inthe opposite direction, due to the manner of pivoting the yoke K and thearms J and the manner of connecting the said yoke and arms by the linksK. The manner in which the brushes are so rocked will now be described(see Figs. 1, 5 and 6).

L denotes a shaft extending transversely of the apparatus and mounted inbearings L on the members 1 Intermediate its ends, this shaft isprovided with a downwardly projecting arm L and at one end thereof witha substantially horizontal arm L The arm L is connected to the yoke K bymeans of a link L having one end pivotally con nected to the lower endof the said arm and its opposite end connected to a lug L on the yoke. Avertical rod M is connected at one end to the outer end of the arm L thelower end of said rod extending through a sleeve M carried by one of thearms B. A stop M is secured to the rod M and is located above the arm Bwhen the latter is in its lowered position. As the arms 13 move upwardlyfrom the position shown in Fig. 1 to the position shown in Fig. 2, thesleeve M will engage the stop M and lift the rod M, thereby rocking theshaft L which, through the arms L and the link L, will rock the yoke Kthereby moving the brushes K toward the bottles which have been liftedby the upward movement of th arms B, and this movement of the brushes Kwill in turn rock the brush J toward the brushes K, the brushes thenoccupying the positions shown in Figs. 2 and 6. As the arms B movedownwardly, a spring L connected to the housing at L and to the yoke Kat L (see Figs. 3 and 8) will rock the yoke in the opposite direction,bringing it into engagement with the adjustable stop N, which'is mountedin a cross bar N extending between the members 1 the stop providingmeans for adj ustably limiting the separation of the brushes J 2 and K.

Reference has been made hereinbefore to the raising of the bottoms ofthe bottles in successive transverse series against the brush J Themanner in which this is accomplished will 110w be described.

Extending downwardly from the horizontal flange of the angle member Dare guides 0 through which rods 0 extend (see Figs. 4, 5 and 6). Theupper ends of the rods are connected to an upper bottle lifting bar 0and the lower ends are connected to the horizontal flange of an anglebar 0 constituting a lower bottle lifting bar. The lower bar isyieldably supported by springs 0* connected at their lower ones to eyebolts 0 carried by opposite ends of said bar while their upper ends areconnected to opposite sides of the frame of the apparatus, as shown atO. Rods Rextend through the horizontal flange of the angle bar O and aresurrounded at their upper portions by springs R bearing at their lowerends against the horizontal flange of the angle bar 0 and at their upperends against stops R on their respective rods. The lower ends of therods It extend through brackets R carried by the crosshead B and areprovided with nuts R thereon below said brackets. When the cross-head isin its lowered position, the springs R are under sufiicient compressionto overcome the lifting effort of the springs O. However, as thecross-head B rises, the brackets R move away from the nuts R thusrelieving the compression exerted on the springs R and allowing thesprings O to elevate the lower lifting bar 0 and the upper lifting bar 0and the bottles above the latter, bringing the bottoms of the bottlesinto contact with the brush J (see Fig. 6). When the cross-head B islowered, the lugs R will engage the nuts R and pull the rods R and thebar 0 downwardly to the position shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5, thuslowering the bottles into the seats provided therefor in their carrier.The springs R function as an additional cushion in the loweringmovements of the bars 0 and 0 bus serving to lower the bottles intotheir carrier seats without injury.

From the foregoing detailed explanation, it is believed that the generaloperation of the apparatus will be readily understood. The conveyor willbe operated to move the same intermittently along the rails 1. lVhen thecarrier has been brought below the rotating spindles F, the brushes J 2and K will bein the separated relation shown in Figs. 1 and 5, due tothe action of the spring L and the connecting links K. As the crossheadB starts to move upwardly, the cross bars E are moved so that thetongues E carried thereby will cooperate with the tongues E carried bythe bars E to center the mouths of the bottles in such series above thelifting rods A. The bottles, when lifted from their seats by the rods A,will engage the rotating clamps F on the bottoms of the rods F and willbe rotated thereby. As the bottles move upwardly, the sleeve M engagesthe stop M and rocks the shaft L to bring the brushes J and K towardeach other, thereby to operate upon the sides and necks of the bottles,as shown in Fig. 2. The brushes K" are rotating about vertical axeswhile the brush J 2 is rotating about a horizontal axis and is alsobeing reciprocated by means of the shaft H, crank H and the connectionsbetween the crank and the shaft I hereinbefore described. When the armsB are lowered, the bottles are lowered with them, the clamps F remainingin contact with the bottles until the latter are nearly within theirseats. movement of the bottles the sleeve M will move away from the stopM and the spring L? will move the brushes J and K apart, as shown inFigs. land 5.

The conveyor is then advanced another step, bringing the series ofbottles just treated beneath the brush J and the succeeding seriesbeneath the bottle bottom clamps F". The arms B are again rockedupwardly, lifting the succeeding series of bottles into engagement withthe clamps F and between the brushes J 2 and K, which are moved towardeach other in the manner described hereinbefore. As the cross-head Bmoves upwardly, the springs O are permitted to lift the upper and lowerlifting bars 0 and O in the manner described, the upper bar engaging themouths of the bottles of the series thereabove and lifting the bottomsof the bottles into engagement with the rotating and reciprocating brushJ On the downward movement of the arms B, resulting in the downwardmovement of the crosshead B, the two series of bottles are returned tothe seats in their respective carriers.

The manner of brushing the bottles disclosed herein has been found to beextremely efficient, the sides and necks of the bottles being subjectedto the action of the intermeshing brushes K which are rotatable aboutsubstantially vertical axes, and to the action of the brush J whichrotates about a horizontal axis and which at the same time isreciprocated along the sides and necks of the rotating bottles.Furthermore, the brush J 2 serves to clean the bottoms of the bottlesmost effectively, due to its rotary and reciprocatory movements; and theconstruction by which the foregoing results have been obtained hasproved to be extremely practical and eflicient in operation.

During this downward I Having thus described my invention, what I claimis 1. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottlecarriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, or" brushng means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially *ertical axis and extendingtransversely of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, a transverse series of bottle-bottomclamps mounted for reciprocation between the two brushing mechanisms,means for rotating the bottlebottom clamps, means for lifting atransverse series of bottles, from their respective seats in a carrierinto engagement with the bottlebottom clamps and for moving the bottlesthus clamped upwardly between said brushing mechanisms and forthereafter restoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, meansoperative by the lifting of the said bottles from their seats for movingsaid brushing mechanisms toward each other and for moving the saidbrushing mechamsms apart during the downward movement of the bottlestoward their seats, means for rotating the said brushes and means forreciprocating one of the said brushing mechanisms transversely of theconveyor.

2. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bot les and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchappa rates, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and extendingtransversely of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a transver e seriesofbottles from their respective seats in a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between the said brush; ing mechanisms and forthereafter restoring the bottles to their seats in such oa-nier, meansoperative by the lifting of said bottles from their seats for moving thebrushing mechanisms toward each other and for moving said brushingmechanisms apart during the downward movement or" said bottles towardtheir seats, means for rotating said brushes, and means forreciprocating one of said brushing mechanisms transversely of saidconveyor;

3. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adaptedto be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and extendingtransversely of said and a second brushing mechanism ug a brush adjacentto the said set ushes and extending transversely of said apparatus andmounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis, means forlifting a transverse series of bottles from their respective seats in acarrier and for moving the bottles upwardly between the said brushingmechanisms and for thereafter restoring the bottles to their seats insuch carrier, means for rotating said brushes, means for reciprocatingthe second brushing mechanism, means for thereafter lifting the bottlesfrom the said carrier to bring their bottoms into engagement with suchsecond brushing mechanism and for restoring the said bottles to theirseats in such carrier, and connections between the first mentionedbottle lifting means and the second mentioned bottle lifting means foroperating the latter lifting means by the former means.

a. in an apparatus for cleaning bottles,

combination, with a conveyor compristransversely extending bottlecarriers each having seats for bottles and adapted to be movedintermittently through such apparatus, of brushing means above saidconveyor, the means comprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a setof brushes mounted rotation each about a substantially vertical axis andextending transverse-ly of said apparatus, and a second brushingmechanism comprising a brush adj-acent t" the said set of brushes andextending transversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation abouta substantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a trans verse seriesor" bottles from their respective seats 111 a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between said brushing mechanisms and for thereaiterestoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, means operative bythe lifting of said bottles from their seats for moving the saidbrushing mechanisms toward each other and for moving the said brushingmechanisms apart during the downward movement of the bottles towardtheir seats, and means for rotating the said brushes.

5. in an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with a coneyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each having seatsfor bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising brushing mechanisms between which the bottles on a carrierare adapted to be raised and lowered, one of said mechanisms comprisinga brush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis,means for raising and lowering the bottles from their seats in a carrierbetween the said brushing mechanisms, and means for lifting the bottlesfrom an adjacent carrier to bring their bottoms into contact with thesaid brush, the lastmentioned means comprising a lifting bar extendingtransversely of the apparatus beneath the last-mentioned carrier, springmechanism tending to elevate said lifting bar, and connections betweenthe said bar and the bottle raising and lowering means wherebythe saidspring mechanism is inoperative to raise the lifting bar when the saidbottle lifting means is in its lowered position but is renderedoperative to lift said bar by the upward movement of said bottle liftingmeans.

6. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising brushing mechanisms between which the bottles on a carrierare adapted to be raised and lowered, one of said mechanisms comprisinga brush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis,means for raising and lowering the bottles from their seats in a carrierbetween the said brushing mechanisms and means operative by thebottle-raising and lowering means for lifting the bottles from anadjacent carrier to bring their bottoms into contact with the saidbrush, the last-mentioned means comprising a crosshead connected withthe first bottle lifting means, an upper lifting bar positioned beneaththe mouths of the bottles in said adjacent carrier, a lower barconnected to said upper bar, springs connected to the lower bar andtending to elevate the same, brackets carried by said cross head, rodsextending through the lower bar and through said brackets and eachhaving a nut on the lower end thereof below such bracket, and a springsurrounding each such rod above the said lower bar and pressingdownwardly upon said bar thereby to normally hold both bars in loweredposition.

7. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted tobe moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising brushing mechanisms between which the bottles on a carrierare adapted to be raised and lowered,

one of said mechanisms comprising a brush mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for raising and lowering thebottles from their seats in a carrier between the said brushingmechanisms, and means operative by the bottle raising and lowering meansfor lifting the bottles from an adjacent carrier to bring their bottomsinto contact with the said brush, the last mentioned means comprising alifting bar extending transversely of the apparatus beneath the lastmentioned carrier, spring mechanism tending to elevate said lifting bar,and spring mechanism operatively connected to the said bar and to thefirst bottle lifting means for preventing the lifting movement of thefirst mentioned spring mechanism when the first bottle lifting means isin a lowered position and for permitting such lifting action when thefirst bottle lifting means is in an elevated position.

8. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination, withmeans for supporting a series of bottles with their mouths downward anda brush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis abovesaid bottles, of means for lifting the bottles from their supports and Ifor bringing their bottoms into engagement with the said brush and forduring the upward movement of said reciprocating means thereby to permitthe lifting action of the first mentioned spring and for restoring theresistance of the second mentioned spring during the downward movementof said reciprocating means thereby to lower the said lifting bar.

9. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination, with,means for supporting aseries of bottles with their mouths downward and abrush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis abovesaid bottles, of means for lifting the bottles from their supports andfor bringing their bottoms into engagement with the said brush and forthereafter restoring them to their seats, the said means comprising anupper lifting bar arranged beneath the mouths of the, bottles, a lowerliftingbar, one or more rods connecting the said bars, springsoperatively connected to opposite ends of the lower lifting bar andtending to elevate the sameand the upper lifting bar, rods extending.through the lower lifting bar and each having a spring surrounding itsupper portion and hearing at its lower end against the lower liftingbar, avertically movable member having openings throughwhich the lowerends of the said rods extend, the said rods being provided with stops onthe lower ends below the said openings whereby, when the said member isin lowered position, the springs on said rods will hold the lower bar inits depressed position against the ac tion of the first mentionedsprings, and means for reciprocating said member whereby on the upwardmovement of the same the resistance of the second springs to the firstsprings will be overcome and the bottles lifted from their seats tobring their bottoms into engagement with the brush and, on thereversemovement of said movable member, the rods will be pulled downwardthereby to compress the second mentioned springs to cushion the downwardmovement of the liting bars and the return of the bottles to theirseats.

10. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and extendingtransversely of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a transverse series ofbottles from their respective seats in a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between the said brushing mechanisms and for thereafterrestoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, means for rotatingsaid brushes, and means for reciprocating one or" said brushingmechanisms transversely of said conveyor.

11. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and extendingtransversely of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of the apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a transverse series ofbottles from their respective seats in a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between the said brushing mechanisms and for thereafterrestoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, means for rotatingsaid brushes, and means for reciprocating the second brushing mechanism.

12. in an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havinseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and ext-endingtransversely of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a transverse series ofbottles from their respective seats in a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between said brushing mechanisms and for thereafterrestoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, and means forrotating said brushes.

13. in an apparatus for cleaning bottles, tie combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing moans above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brushing mechanism consisting of a set of brushes mountedfor rotation each about a substantially vertical axis and extendingtransverse ly of said apparatus, and a second brushing mechanismcomprising a brush adjacent to the said set of brushes and extendingtransversely of said apparatus and mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, means for lifting a transverse series ofhottles from their respective seats in a carrier and for moving thebottles upwardly between the said brushing mechanisms and for thereafterrestoring the bottles to their seats in such carrier, means for rotatingsaid brushes, and means for thereafter lifting the bottles from the saidcarrier to bring their bottoms into engagement with said second brushingmechanism.

14. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchapparatus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising brushing mechanisms between which the bottles on a carrierare adapted to be raised and lowered, one of said mechanisms comprisinga brush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis,means for raising and lowering the bottles from their seats in a carrierbetween the said brushing mechanisms, means for liftin the bottles froman adjacent carrier to brmg their bottoms into contact with the saidbrush, and means for axially reciprocating the said brush.

'll 15. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchappara- IQ tus, of brushing means above said conveyor, the said meanscomprising a brush mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontalaxis and extending transversely of said conveyor, and means for liftingthe bottles from a carrier to bring their bottoms into contact with thesaid brush, the last-mentioned means comprising an upper lifting barpositioned beneath the mouths of the bottles in said carrier, a lowerbar connected to said upper bar,

2 aspring connected to the lower bar and tending to elevate the same, avertically movable bracket, a rod extending through the lower bar andextending through said bracket and having a nut on the lower end thereofbelow said bracket, a spring surrounding said rod above the lower barand pressing downwardly upon said bar thereby to normally hold both barsin lowered position, and means for reciprocating said bracketvertically.

80 16. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats for bottles and adapted to be moved intermittently through suchappara- 16 tus, of brushing means above said conveyor,

the said means comprising a brush mounted for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis and extending transversely of saidconveyor, and means for lifting the bottles from a carrier to bringtheir bottoms into contact with the said brush, the said meanscomprising a lifting bar extending transversely of the apparatus beneaththe mouths of the bottles in said carrier, spring mechanism tending toelevate said lifting bar, a vertically movable member, spring mechanismoperatively connected to the said bar and to the said member forpreventing the lifting movement of the first mentioned spring mechanismwhen the said member is in its lowered position and for permitting suchlifting action when the said member is in an elevated position. i

' 17 In an apparatus for brushing the out- 65 sides of bottles, thecombination of a yoke having aligned bearings at opposite ends thereof,a shaft rotatably mounted in said bearings, shafts supported by saidyoke and extending at substantially right angles to the first mentionedshaft, a brush mounted on each of the last mentioned shafts, pinions onthe first mentioned shaft and a gear on each of the second mentionedshafts meshing each with one of the first mentioned pinions, a

shaft spaced from the first mentioned shaft and substantially paralleltherewith, a pair of arms mounted on the last mentioned shaft andextending on opposite sides thereof, one end of each of the lastmentioned arms having a bearing, a shaft mounted in said bearings, abrush on said last mentioned shaft, 3.

link connecting with the said yoke the portion of one of said arms whichis on the opposite side of its supporting shaft from the brush shaft,driving connections between the first mentioned shaft and the lastmentioned brush shaft, a spring operatively connected with said yoke andtending to move the said yoke away from the arms which support the lastmentioned brush shaft, means for moving a bottle between said brushes,and means operated by such movement for rocking the said yoke againstthe action of the said spring.

18. In an apparatus for brushing the outsides of bottles, thecombination of a yoke having aligned bearings at opposite ends thereof,a shaft rotatably mounted in said bearings, shafts supported by saidyoke and extending at substantially right angles to the first mentionedshaft, a brush mounted on each of the last mentioned shafts, pinions onthe first mentioned shaft and a gear on each of the second mentionedshafts meshing each with one of the first mentioned pinions, a shaftspaced from the first mentioned shaft and substantially paralleltherewith, a pair of arms mounted on the last mentioned shaft andextending on opposite sides thereof, one end of each of the lastmentioned arms having a bearing, a shaft mounted in said bearings, abrush on said last mentioned shaft, a link connecting with the said yokethe portion of one of said arms which is on the opposite side of itssupporting shaft from the brush shaft, driving connectionsbetween thefirst mentioned shaft and the brush shaft, a

spring operatively connected with said oke and tending to move the saidyoke away rom the arms which sup ortthe last mentioned brush shaft,means or moving a bottle upwardly between said brushes, means operatedby such movement for rocking the said yoke against the action of thesaid spring, and means for reciprocating the last mentioned brush shaftand its supporting shaft without breaking the driving connectionsbetween said last mentioned brush shaft and the first mentioned shaft.

19. In an apparatus for brushing the outsides of bottles, thecombination of a rotatably supported hanger, a shaft supported by saidhanger, a brush mounted on the said shaft, a pair of pivotally supportedarms adjacent thereto, a shaft mounted in said arms, a brush on the lastmentioned shaft, means for driving the said shafts, means connected withthe shaft-supporting members and tending to move the said shafts apart,means for moving a bottle between said apart, means for driving saidshafts, means for moving a bottle between said brushes, and meansoperative by such movement for overcoming the action of said spring andfor forcing the shafts toward each other upon the insertion of a bottlebetween said brushes and for rendering the spring operative to separatethe shafts by the removal of the bottle from between the said brushes.

2-1. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles,

the combination, with a conveyor comprising transversely extendingbottle carriers each having seats adapted to support bottles mouthdownward and adapted to be moved intermittently through such apparatus,of

x I brushing means above said conveyor, a series of lifting rods for thebottles on each carrier located below said brushing means and adapted toraise the bottles from each such carrier into operative relation to thebrushing means, and means for aligning the mouths of the bottles on eachcarrier with such lifting rods, the said means comprising longitudinallyextending guide members adapted to receive the necks and mouths of 1 thebottles on each carrier therebetween and to permit the passage of thesame therethrough, each of said guide members having a verticallyprojecting extension, a pair of transversely extending bars verticallyspaced from the said guide members, each of said bars having projectionsextending toward but normally out of register with the spaces betweensaid bars, hangers pivoted to the opposite sides of the said apparatusand having substantially vertically extending arms pivotally connectedto the said bars, one of said hangers comprising a bell crank, a rodconnected with said bell crank and normally holding the said bars withthe projections thereof out of register with the spaces between the saidguide members, a spring tending to move the bars in the oppositedirection against the action of the last mentioned rod, means forraising and lowering the said lifting rods, and connections between saidraising and lowering means and the rod connected with the bell crankwhereby as the said lifting rods are raised, the restraining action uponthe spring by the rod connected with the bell crank is overcome and theprojections on the said bars are brought into register with the spacesbetween the guide members, and upon the downward movement of the saidraising and lowering means the last mentioned rod is operated againstthe action of said spring thereby to move the bars to bring theprojections thereof out of register with the spaces between the saidmembers.

22. In an apparatus for cleaning bottles, the combination, with aconveyor comprising transversely extending bottle carriers each havingseats adapted to support bottles mouth downward and adapted to be movedintermittently through such apparatus, of brushing means above saidconveyor, a series of lifting rods for the bottles on each carrierlocated below said brushing means and adapted to raise the bottles fromeach such carrier into operative relation to the brushing means, andmeans for aligning the mouths of the bottles on each carrier with suchlifting rods, the said means comprising longitudinally extending guidemembers adapted to receive the necks and mouths of the bottles on eachcarrier therebetween and to permit the passage of the same therethrough,each of said guide members having a downwardly projecting tongue, a pairof transversely extending bars located beneath the said guide members,each of said bars having upwardly extending tongues adapted by themovement of said bars to register with the spaces between said bars,bell cranks pivoted to the opposite sides of the said apparatus andhaving substantially vertically extending arms pivotally connected tothe said bars, a rod connected with one of said bell cranks and normallyholding the said bars with the tongues thereof out of register with thespaces between the said guide members, a spring connected with the otherof said bell cranks and tending to move the bars into register with saidspaces, means for raising and lowering the said lifting u rods, and a.connection between said raising and lowering means and said secondmentioned rod whereby as the said lifting rods are lifted, therestraining action upon the spring by the rod connected with a bellcrank is overcome and the tongues of said bars are brought into registerwith the spaces between the guide members, and upon the downwardmovement of the said lifting rods the second mentioned rod is operatedagainst the action of said spring thereby to move the bars to bring thetongues thereof out of register with the spaces between the saidmembers.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto affix my signature.

JOHN R. GRUETTER.

